Brain organoids developed with complex neural activity
Researchers at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA; CA, USA) have developed brain organoids that exhibit neurological patterns similar to those found in living human brains.
The study, published in Nature Neuroscience, broadens the list of brain conditions that can be studied using organoids, with patterns of electrical activity resembling seizures being observed in organoids grown from stem cells derived from individuals with Rett syndrome. This further demonstrates the value of these models in investigating the underlying causes of neurological diseases and testing potential therapies.
The past few years have seen progress in researchers’ ability to study the progression of disease and safety of potential therapies by the use of organoids, miniaturized and simplified versions of organs developed by encouraging induced pluripotent stem cells to aggregate into three-dimensional forms. This has allowed researchers to carry out experiments that aren’t possible in living humans.
The structural complexity of the human brain, however, means that creating an organoid that mimics its activity is particularly challenging.
“With many neurological diseases, you can have terrible symptoms but the brain physically looks fine,” explained first author Ranmal Samarasinghe (Broad Stem Cell Research Center, UCLA). “So to be able to seek answers to questions about these diseases, it’s very important that with organoids we can model not just the structure of the brain but the function as well.”
Researchers at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA; CA, USA) have developed brain organoids that exhibit neurological patterns similar to those found in living human brains.
The study, published in Nature Neuroscience, broadens the list of brain conditions that can be studied using organoids, with patterns of electrical activity resembling seizures being observed in organoids grown from stem cells derived from individuals with Rett syndrome. This further demonstrates the value of these models in investigating the underlying causes of neurological diseases and testing potential therapies.
The past few years have seen progress in researchers’ ability to study the progression of disease and safety of potential therapies by the use of organoids, miniaturized and simplified versions of organs developed by encouraging induced pluripotent stem cells to aggregate into three-dimensional forms. This has allowed researchers to carry out experiments that aren’t possible in living humans.
The structural complexity of the human brain, however, means that creating an organoid that mimics its activity is particularly challenging.
“With many neurological diseases, you can have terrible symptoms but the brain physically looks fine,” explained first author Ranmal Samarasinghe (Broad Stem Cell Research Center, UCLA). “So to be able to seek answers to questions about these diseases, it’s very important that with organoids we can model not just the structure of the brain but the function as well.”
Ref:https://www.regmednet.com/brain-organoids-developed-with-complex-neural-activity
